Savage Bears

Alice looked at the bear looking at him with ferocious gaze. Alice kept her fingers on the bowstring waiting for him to charge toward her. These Savage Bears have sharp claws and high endurance. There furs are of dark brown colors and cushion blunt damages. It will hard for her to kill it with just arrows.

Roar.

Bear roared and charge toward her. She raised her bow and withdraws an arrow from her storage and put it on the bow. She pulls the bowstring while charging the arrow with her mana. She releases it at the savage bear when it was ten meter away from her.

Savage Bear looked at the arrow hurled toward it and dodged when it was a meter away from it. It blinded charged forward when it noticed a sharp pain at its leg, it can't help but turn its head back to look at it legs.

There was an arrow stuck there, it was the same arrow that it dodged. It looked back at human who fired it but there was no one there. It sensed the mana fluctuation behind it and turns around to look at the human.

Alice draws another arrow and fired it toward the sky. She withdraws another one and charged it with mana at the same time savage bear charges toward her again. She fires the arrow at it and it dodge again but again it hit its leg. It growls lowly in pain but didn't stops its charge and attack her with its paw.

His paw suddenly stuck by an arrow out of nowhere as it stands a meter away from her. Arrow put it paw down and sticks it to the ground. Alice took this change and climbs his huge hair arm with quick steps. She stands on it back and attacks its nap. Arrow stuck its nap but it didn't go deep enough, Alice jumped back at the right moment when it turns around to attack her.

Her eyes were glowing as she looked at the bear. She has a skill called Motion Vision (E-Rank). It let her predict the next single movement of the target in vision. Her condition was not so good. She didn't have enough power to finish it off. Ethan won't be useful in anything more than a scapegoat. She needs to take care of it all alone. It's a luck that savage bear fights alone or she wouldn't be able to handle more than one of them.

Bear charges forward again and she pulls the bowstring with an arrow and charges it with mana. Archer proficiency is divided into five categories like other weapon proficiency. The first one is just charging mana to arrow and boosting it strength.

At Practitioner level, Archers are able to give a simple command to their arrow once. It can be too turn right, left, up and down. At Expert level, Numbers of command can increases and numbers depends on archer proficiency over it.

At Master Level, Archers can pretty much do anything they want with their arrows. The can give it complex commands like following someone or multiples one like moving zigzag or oblique or anything they want…

Alice attacks it again and kept her distance. Unfortunately, there is not enough shadow or she would have rather escape than fight. She has no choice but to keep doing it while keeping her distance. She can't tire it out as these savage bears have annoying resilience.

Alice struck arrows at its joint to hinder its movement but her arrows are not penetrating enough to cause it. A drop of sweat fell from her forehead to cheek. She might be in a serious trouble today…

Alice nocks multiple arrows over the bowstring and fired it. She gave them different commands and aimed for its shoulder joints from all the sides. She keeps doing the same things and kept attacking from the different direction. She needs to slow down its movement for her to able to do something about it.

Bear finally felt pain in moving his arms and legs. He stops and pulls the arrows of its both shoulders. Alice took that chance and nocked different two arrows this time. She charged it and attacks at the same points. Bear noticed it but it was already too late. Both arrows pierced both side of shoulder and explode. It roars in pains as it covers in the explosion.

Alice just hoped it worked enough to make its arms disable but her hopes goes down in disappointment. Savage Bear roared once again and charge at the direction opposite to cliff. It reached the trees and wraps its thick furry arms around it. Savage bear starts shaking the tree which gives her bad feeling.

She hurriedly withdraws arrows and starts aiming for its thick arms as it tried to uproot the trees. She fires arrows as fast as possible but it didn't work as savage bear finally uprooted the tree and hurled it toward her in spinning manner.

Alice dashed forward right at the same moment as thick tree spins toward her. Alice jumps at the right moment but tree was spinning and its branch hits her legs. Her face goes down toward the ground but she stabilizes her landing by rolling over. Alice rolls few times over the ground and stand up only to be greeting by bear-kun from front.

It swings its paw from the side and hit her right-arm. She felt her bone cracking even after strengthening it with mana. She launched to her side and rolls down on the ground laterally and stops at the edge of the cliff. Her bow flew off from her hand and fell down the cliff. She curls up and grabs her broken arms in pain.

Bear didn't show any mercy and charge toward her and climbs up over body. Its roars and looked at her face with savagery and hunger. It wave like foul breath hit her and her face shrink in disturbance. Alice looked at its face close up and finally understands why they are called savage bears. Its small eyes and large mouth opened in roar made her tremble in fear.

She tried to back off but there was nothing her hands hit nothing but air instead of ground. She looked around but found nothing, not even her bow. She looks up and noticed the savage bear. It finally hit her that she is going to die!

She can't believe she is going to die here! Her eyes tear up and looking away. Her father image comes in her mind. He was always strong and always protected her from everyone. She insists to become an archer when he told her to learn the sword but she didn't listen to him and did her will.

If she had done it, she might not have to die like this. She doesn't want to die. It was her dream to make her guild stand on the same stage as four families. She doesn't want to die before completing her dreams. Savage Bear opens its mouth wide to bite a big chunk of her meat but…

Bang.

A bullet pierced it hard plate of its mouth but it didn't dig enough. Ethan clicked his tongue and pull Alice down from the edge of the cliff. He was hanging over the edge of the cliff, waiting for an opening but it doesn't look like he is lucky enough to kill an E-Rank Monster while being a G-Rank. He pushed the stones he was using to hang on and a thread becomes visibly tied around his waist.

Ethan pushed away while moving in a circular path with a centrifugal force. Ethan was desperately hoping that it will give up in tension. Savage Bears roars and jumps off with a run-up. Ethan looked at it with a ugly expression. His pupil expands as Recall works its magic and everything become slower. Bear was in the middle of air, jumping on him.

Ethan didn't think he will be safe. Bear will surely reach them so raised his hand and pull thread and wrap his body around Alice. Everything become normal in his vision and his body suspended on the air for a moment before going down.

Savage bear missed him by a inch as it passed above him. It didn't forget to swing his hands in the air and attack the human which luckily wield the result and three sharp claws scratched his back deeply. His straightened in pain as he tried to shrug it off.

Alice had already closed her eyes and refused to open it in any moment. She already believed that she died and she is flying to heaven.

Ethan hangs on the thread with constant twitching on his pain. His back was bleeding like a half-opened tap. It constantly pour down blood in the air. He strengthened his grip around Alice and climbs the cliff using thread. His hands were trembling and it's skin was visibly paling but he still didn't give up and climbs.

Alice finally felt something is wrong and raised her head to look around. She noticed Ethan and his strain expression but she felt his hand wrapping around her waist and his grip seems to be tightening every moment.

Eek!

She shrieked and try to move her body to get away from him. This guy is completely taking advantage of her. She felt his cold hand that seems to be digging on her waist. She felt a weird feeling that she can't describe but she need to get away from him right away! She tried to struggle her body away but…

"Stay Still!"

She flinched and looked up at Ethan's face who just screamed at her in a loud and strained voice. He was looking at her with a cold and disgusted expression. She didn't say anything and just bury her face in his chest. She realise that they were hang over 100m up. A mistake is all that needs, to take their life.

Ethan finally climbs up and lie down on the grass field. Alice lied on his arms on one side. Ethan was not in good condition. His skin over the hand completely lose its color but his face seems surprisingly fine with just some sweats covering it. He had hard maintaining consciousness. He was already in adrenaline when he pull himself up. The wound on his back is too big and he lost too much blood due to that.

Alice raised herself and look around. She had hard believing that she survived. What is more unbelievable that she was saved by someone who was lot weaker than her. She always believe that all it will only take a arrow from her to defeat him, yet same guy saved her life today.

Ethan suddenly opened his eyes wide in an shock and stands up as his danger sense rang. Alice had her turned to look at him, she flinched when she saw him standing up like that. He hurriedly turns around and pushed her away. She was thrown to her side by the push. It was unexpected so she was caught-off guard. She turned around with a frown to complained about this push.

Just because, he saved his life that doesn't mean he can treat her rudely like that. She is grateful to him but that doesn't mean she will let him to treat her like a pushover.

Her eyes widen when she looked at him. He was pinned down by a bear with its claw stabbing his stomach and his mouth wide open in pain and anguish. His body was twitching continuously as it tried to struggle. Alice was unable to react with what is going.

"Aggh…"

A grunt escaped from his mouth as he tried to struggle being skewer by the savage bear claws. Ethan looked at it with a cold expression and uses its leg to push his stomach and roll backward. They were still few meters away but savage bears had huge bodies. It was unable to balance at the edge of cliff and falls down together with it.

Alice finally came out of daze and ran toward the edge and looks down. She didn't know why but a loud scream release from her mouth.

"ETHAN!"